The 3 Best Entry-Level Rolex Watches

You happily own a Rolex watch. Or you plan to happily own a Rolex watch.

If you fall in the latter, picking the first timepiece to build your collection around isn't an easy task. So we called in an expert – Paul Altieri, the CEO and founder of Bob's Watches, the biggest (and best) vintage Rolex dealer in the world – and asked which entry-level pieces from Rolex were the smartest buys for a newcomer to the watch world. His choices:

"The Rolex Oyster Perpetual collection is the brand’s no-frills approach to a pristine luxury watch. Built with the essentials in mind, the Oyster Perpetual is the modern interpretation of a Rolex classic.The white dial of this particular Oyster Perpetual ref. 114200 is kept simple and clean with luminescent baton-style hour markers alongside the characteristic 3, 6, and 9 Arabic numerals."

"For a timelessly elegant dress watch, the Datejust 116200 checks off all the boxes. The stainless steel 36mm Oyster case and Oyster bracelet coupled with the smooth domed bezel provides a modern contrast to the more traditional Roman numeral dial. The color of the rhodium dial matches the stainless steel flawlessly for a sleek monochromatic aesthetic making the magnified date window at 3’clock all the more legible."

"For an entry-level Rolex sports watch, the Explorer is the best place to start. Robust thanks to its stainless steel body and sporty because of its black dial with prominent luminescent indexes and hands, the appeal of the Explorer lies it its straightforward attitude."